Truckers hope Obama will drive carefully on fuel efficiency

That's the message President Barack Obama sent American businesses today by directing government agencies to develop higher fuel efficiency standards for medium- and heavy-duty trucks by March 2016.

This would be the second round of federal regulations aimed at forcing big trucks to get more miles per gallon. The first round of higher standards, issued in 2011, took effect in 2014 and last through 2018. The new standards, which will be developed by the Department of Transportation and the Environmental Protection Agency, "will take us well into the next decade," Obama said.

The trucking industry was largely on board with the 2011 standards, but the American Trucking Associations urged the administration to "proceed cautiously" in crafting this new round.

The new standards should be based "on the best science and research available" and be "economically achievable," said ATA President and CEO Bill Graves.

"However, we should make sure that new rules don’t conflict with safety or other environmental regulations, nor should they force specific types of technology onto the market before they are fully tested and ready," he said.

ATA Chairman Phil Byrd, president of Bulldog Hiway Express in Charleston, S.C., said regulators also need to take into account the diversity of the trucking industry.

"Whatever tests are devised should accurately reflect what drivers face on the roads every day," Byrd said.

The Owner-Operator Independent Drivers Association said it's concerned the new standards will only make trucks more expensive.

Obama traveled to a Safeway distribution center in Upper Marlboro, Md., to announce his plans for another round of higher fuel efficiency standards. Parked next to him were two truck cabs, one from Safeway and one from Coca-Cola. Both companies are part of the National Clean Fleets Partnership, which encourages businesses with large transportation fleets to reduce their use of gasoline and diesel fuel.

Higher fuel efficiency standards for big trucks will help the environment and the economy, Obama contended.

The first round of higher standards will save truckers $50 billion in fuel costs and reduce oil consumption by 530 million barrels, according to the White House.

Heavy-duty trucks account for 4 percent of all vehicles on the road, he said, but are responsible for about 20 percent of on-road fuel consumption, Obama said. They're the second-largest source of greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector, behind cars and light trucks.

Trucks also carry 70 percent of all freight in the U.S.

Reduced fuel costs will reduce shipping costs, Obama said.

"Every mile that we gain in fuel efficiency is worth thousands of dollars of savings every year," he said. That "should pay off in lower prices for consumers."

The Consumer Federation of America estimates the average American household could save $250 a year from higher fuel efficiency standards for big trucks.

"Fuel costs associated with shipping goods cross country heavily impact the price of everything from a carton of milk to a pair of shoes," said Mark Cooper, the federation's director of research. "Achievable standards that cut fuel use by nearly 50 percent would put $29.5 billion dollars back into the pockets of Americans."